Identifying Challenges Confronting Asia and Building Bridges Over Troubled Water—APHA Annual Conference Takes Place in Ulaanbaatar
(September 26, 2019, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia) The Annual Conference of the Asian Politics and History Association kick-started with an inaugural session at the beautiful main building of the Mongolian Foreign Ministry on September 26, 2019. The theme was “Challenges Confronting Asia Today: Nuclear Proliferation, Environment, Political-Economic, Civilizational.”
In the three-day fast paced conference, two dozen scholars from China, the United States, Mongolia and Russia presented and discussed those challenges facing contemporary Asia. The conference was sponsored by
- Asian Politics and History Association (APHA),
- Clarewood University, located in Reston, Virginia,
- Blue Banner Foundation of Ulaanbaatar,
- International Society for the Comparative Study of Civilizations (ISCSC) and
- The Mongolia Society.
Conference papers may be published in each participating organization’s journal – Journal of Asian Politics and History, Comparative Civilizations Review, and Asia Perspective, or selected for publication in a book to be published by Routledge in England under the title, Northeast Asian Security, Major Powers and Mongolia: Nuclear Proliferation, Environment, and Civilizational Confronts, which will be co-edited by Dr. Alicia Campi, President of APHA and President Emerita of the Mongolia Society.
The conference also featured a beautiful reception sponsored by Ambassador Michael Klecheski of the United States, at the official ambassadorial residence, in celebration of the book launch of Dr. Campi’s new book, Mongolia’s Foreign Policy, Navigating a Changing World. After the conference, there was a countryside excursion. This gave attendees not only an exposure to the beautiful Mongolian hills and plains and dramatic transition from rural to suburban and urban life now occurring in Mongolia, but also included horse riding and archery in front of a gigantic metallic statue of Chinggis Khan.
“In Asia, not all borders and boundaries, physical or otherwise, can be easily crossed,” observed Dr. Mark Zhong, Executive Director of APHA, “yet we hope to build a platform of communication, not only identifying challenges but also seeking workable solutions, and building bridges over troubled waters.” Many participants believe that this unique 2019 international conference in Mongolia has successfully achieved this goal.
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